Rebirth of NASL into current MLS

[Panthers14]

Just a wild thought and a dream of mine, and I know many of you too, but have you noticed that the MLS has resurected many of the old NASL franchises of yesteryear! To name a few: San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps, and Portland Timbers (to be added tomorrow.) There is, and has been since 1996, speculation of a relaunch of the New York Cosmos; and with 2012 now in the expansion mix, a second team in the Big Apple as well as playing in the city is not far to imagine. The MLS has great teams in cities such as Chicago, Dallas, D.C., and Los Angeles with new identities; but if you (Joe Public) could decide on their name, colors, etc., would you change them? Here is what I would do, and I look forward to your thoughts:

*Chicago Fire would become Chicago Sting
*FC Dallas would become Dallas Tornado
*L.A. Galaxy and DC United would keep names
*bring back San Diego Sockers & NY Cosmos
*relaunch Fort Lauderdale Strikers under FC Barcelona ownership while lowering the expansion fee to $30 million.
*encourage dual ownership such as Manchester United also owning an expansion franchise like a reborn Montreal Impact.

Just a few thoughts in this tangled mind of mine. What do you think? Oh, I forgot, we need to expand in the west to give Real Salt Lake a close rival; I know, bring back the Las Vegas Quicksilver and the Tulsa RoughNecks!:D

[tops804]

However,

On the field; let sleeping dogs lie.

This isn't a 30+ years ago, and the last thing MLS needs; is to
follow in the NASL's footprints.

Isn't this the same league that gave such names as "Clash", "Mutiny", "Burn" and "Wiz"?
Short, simple names such as the successful English teams have. Only to back track and
realize it doesn't work the same for North American leagues.

[Pounder]

European teams do NOT have short names like Clash, Burn, and Wiz. Europe laughed ultra-hard at that crap. I'd like to think that the marketing "wizzes" that thought up that crap have learned their lesson, but I Xtremely doubt that. ;)

Europe has teams like Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur and Sheffield Wednesday and Schalke 04 and Borussia Munchengladbach and AZ Alkmaar. I like Hearts of Midlothian. Lisburn Distillery. Grasshopper. Rushden and Diamonds. England has hundreds of small clubs with interesting names and histories that roll off the tongue and NEVER required marketing consultants to find a mascot to appeal to kids and soccer moms (who only show up once a year anyway).

MLS has nothing to do with teams resurrecting NASL names. That is completely a function of team operator/investors willing to buy the old name. In the cases of Portland and Vancouver, the investors own the names and have been using them in USL. Likely in both cases (certainly for Portland), they are an extension of histories going back to the 70s. Future investors may or may not follow smart advice on the matter... but, then again, even the 70s had a fair share of marketer-driven names. You kind of have to bounce things off supporters to do it right.

BTW- Sons of Ben seeks its own identity. Timbers Army does the same. We support the city as much as the team. This might explain a few things: http://portlandsportsman.com/?p=79

[Panthers14]

Actually, I too do not want to see a return to the old days of the NASL, but I do look forward to a revival of some of the great old teams. As far as the current MLS, I really do not want to see the current teams change their names; I am a Chicago Fire fan and would be disappointed if they did change...but if they did, I would hope for a return of the Chicago Sting. My opening questions was to gage public opinion. I grew up a fan of the original NASL as a kid and the return of some of these teams only helps me to reminisce. I do think that a return of some of these franchises is more a bridge from the old to the new instead of a return to the old NASL. No, I do not want out of control spending, over expansion (however I think that the MLS is close to doing just that now), and underfinanced owner / operators. I like the current single-entity structure now in place. At least we can count on supporting our favorite teams now and far into the future. With the current setup, we no longer have to ask, "Does Soccer have a future in the U.S.?" The answer is yes as long as we stick to current model. So, why not resurrect some of the glory franchises and do "it right" this time around.

[panchess]

The Cosmos were the one franchise that transcended the NASL into the general populace. I am sure when MLS was founded, they didn't take that name because they didn't want to promise New York a team with Pele, et al, on it.

[RevolutionX]

The Cosmos were the New York Yankees of professional soccer. When the NASL folded, Pepe Pinton, an executive for the team, bought the name rights and now runs youth soccer camps under the COSMOS moniker in NJ. He even sells original Cosmos gear on his website. www.nycosmos.com. Jerseys, warmups, etc.To just get the name back, it would cost millions or perhapps giving him a stake in the team. I would love to see it happen and I am not even a soccer fan, but as a kid I saw them play. They used to kick those classic NASL red white and blue soccer balls into the stands prior to the game. 70,000 people in the 70's packing Giants Stadium. Beckenbauer, Chinagla, Pele, Albert, Birkenmeyer. People who are not baseball fans go to Yankee stadium because it is the Yankees. People would come see them play just because it is the Cosmos. Just think of the merchandising possibilities alone.Imagine a star like Beckham playing for the Cosmos. The Red Bull are openeing a new stadium in Harrison NJ next year. Imagine Cosmos Stadium. It would be the Yankee Stadium of the MLS. Bring back the Cosmos!

[nksports]

The Cosmos were the one franchise that transcended the NASL into the general populace. I am sure when MLS was founded, they didn't take that name because they didn't want to promise New York a team with Pele, et al, on it.

This is the same league that signed Beckham.

[Stingray11214]

The Cosmos were the New York Yankees of professional soccer. When the NASL folded, Pepe Pinton, an executive for the team, bought the name rights and now runs youth soccer camps under the COSMOS moniker in NJ. He even sells original Cosmos gear on his website. www.nycosmos.com. Jerseys, warmups, etc.To just get the name back, it would cost millions or perhapps giving him a stake in the team. I would love to see it happen and I am not even a soccer fan, but as a kid I saw them play. They used to kick those classic NASL red white and blue soccer balls into the stands prior to the game. 70,000 people in the 70's packing Giants Stadium. Beckenbauer, Chinagla, Pele, Albert, Birkenmeyer. People who are not baseball fans go to Yankee stadium because it is the Yankees. People would come see them play just because it is the Cosmos. Just think of the merchandising possibilities alone.Imagine a star like Beckham playing for the Cosmos. The Red Bull are openeing a new stadium in Harrison NJ next year. Imagine Cosmos Stadium. It would be the Yankee Stadium of the MLS. Bring back the Cosmos!

It's very, very different today. Back then, the Cosmos were basically a "Dream Team". Superstars from the Old World that you read about, but never saw. Today, with the emergence of the USA as a soccer power, the vast opportunities to see matches from all parts of the Globe, and the more direct corporate sponsorships, make something like the Cosmos almost unattainable.

In fact, would you even WANT a Cosmos situation? Back then, every owner and their mother signed someone with a foreign passport. I mean players like Karl-Heinz Granitza and Oscar Fabbiani made sense, But Mervyn Cawston and Manny Andruszewski? Do you really want teams to get Cosmos-type players on Houston Hurricane money?

The Cosmos were a very special team in a very special time. Pepe Pinton owns nothing except a name. Let him have it. I'll take the memories.

[SanJoseEarthquakes74]

Unlike most North American sports, football LOVES tradition. Just look at the number of teams all over the world who include their founding year in their names or crests. When We got our Earthquakes nickname back in San Jose, everyone who loved the NASL Quakes were SHOCKED when the owners not only created their own new logo for the club, but they opted to use blue over red. The Earthquakes wore red white and black kits when they started in 1974, but the owners decided that color was trivial. I know MANY people in San Jose that refuse to even recognize the new Quakes because of that snub, (I am not one of them as I attend every home game).

I speak for the fans of the Quakes when I say you don't have to ape the NASL for everything they had done. Just get certain aspects of the history on football in the USA right in your new league.

[SanJoseEarthquakes74]

Actually, the guy that owns the "New York Cosmos" name wants a ridiculous amount of money to release it, so MLS passed.